The Crime of the Congo

"The Crime of the Congo" by Arthur Conan Doyle is a scathing examination of the brutal exploitation of the Congo Free State in the early 1900s. Under the guise of humanitarian work, King Leopold II of Belgium orchestrated a system of forced labor, violence, and theft from the Congolese people that resulted in unimaginable suffering; Doyle uses evidence from consuls, missionaries, and other writers to highlight the terrible acts and expose the false claims that hid these actions; the narrative reveals a shocking story of greed and cruelty masked as progress, advocating for global action against colonial abuses.